CHS Roundup
Boys and girls track teams win openers
Both the Chelsea High boys and girls indoor track team opened the Commonwealth Athletic Conference indoor track season with wins over Greater Lowell last week.
The Lady Red Devils won by a convincing 75-9 score. Chelsea was led by Stephanie Simon, who won both the hurdles and the high jump with a school record jump of 4′-10″.
Martine Simon won the 55 dash and finished second in the high jump. Other winners included Yarid Deras in the mile, Awa Bajinka in the 300, Stephanie Rodrigues in the 600, Jocelyn Poste in the 1000, Amanda Dias in the two-mile, and Masireh Ceesay in the shot put.
“It was a good start to the season with everyone working really hard to be ready just a week and a half into the season,” said CHS coach Mark Martineau. “This team has a lot of potential and will be in the mix for a CAC title this year. To do that, a lot of our younger and newer athletes will have to develop into point contributors quickly.”
The boys’ team earned a 50-32 win over Greater Lowell. Pacing the team was senior Jose Leclerc, who won the mile. Other winners included Alex Pedrero in the hurdles and the high jump, David Bui in the dash, Jazmany Reyes in the 600, Rigo Flores in the shot put, and Justin Turner in the two-mile.
“The boys team has been working hard so far this season,” noted Martineau. “This team in not very deep, but has the potential to contend for the CAC title if we can continue to work hard and develop all the athletes we have.”
Yesterday (Wednesday) the boys were slated to take on Lynn Tech and the girls were set to face Lynn Tech and Notre Dame of Tyngsboro.
This Sunday the teams will travel to the Reggie Lewis Center in Boston for the first major invitational of the year, the Winter Festival. Over 1,000 athletes from all over the state will be competing at this meet.
“It’s a great opportunity for our athletes to see how they rank on the state level early in the season,” said Martineau.
Bruins Beat
by Bob Morello
Bruins facing tough stretch
Last night (Wednesday) at press time, the struggling Detroit Red Wings hosted the Bruins at Little Caesars Arena. Boston, was looking to run their winning streak to three games before returning home to face a host of teams currently playing well. Tonight (Thursday 7:00pm) the Bs will start a three-game homestand against the streaking Washington Capitals (8-2-0 last ten) the Caps are currently tied for the top spot in the Metropolitan Division with the Columbus Blue Jackets. In a rare 5:00pm start on Saturday, the New York Rangers (7-2-1) will bring the heat to Garden ice as they attempt to close the gap in the Metropolitan Division, being only four points from the top spot. The oddity in the Metropolitan Division is that only eight points separate the eight teams from top to bottom.
The Bruins continue to put forth a solid effort as they await the return of injured players, Adam McQuaid, Ryan Spooner (lower-body), Noel Acciari, and Peter Cehlarik. McQuaid did return to practice this week, and according to head coach Bruce Cassidy, McQuaid still has a way to go before returning. Spooner and Acciari, both considered day-to-day, have also been practicing this week, and are considered close to being ready for game action. With Tuukka Rask showing signs of returning to solid form once again, he was in net for Boston in Detroit. Anton Khudobin is expected in goal tonight (Thursday) to face the Capitals. Boston is looking to move up in division and conference standings. The Bruins are in decent position, as their schedule has them playing six of their next seven games on Garden ice. In third place of the Atlantic Division, Boston is nine points behind second place Toronto Maple Leafs, with the Bs holding five games in hand. In Eastern Conference standings, going into last night’s game in Detroit, the Bruins were in ninth place, but only three points back of the seventh-place Rangers with three games-in-hand, and also three points behind the eighth-place Pittsburgh Penguins with Boston holding five games in hand on the Pens.
Monday’s matchup with the Blue Jackets (10/18 at 7:00pm) will be yet another tough game on home ice for Boston, as the Jackets continue to battle with the Capitals for the pinnacle of the Metropolitan Division. In game two of this back-to-back, the still struggling Buffalo Sabres (3-5-2) will host the Bruins on Tuesday (10/19 at 7:30pm) and a return to Garden ice will begin another three-game homestand for Boston, beginning with the Winnipeg Jets (Thursday (10/21 at 7:00pm) the Jets are in a dogfight with the St. Louis Blues for first place in the Central Division. These next five games will be a tough test for Boston, as only the Sabres are below the .500 mark (8-17-6). Much depends on which players return to the Bs lineup, but it is also an excellent chance to gain some ground on the teams ahead of them.
CHS boys basketball defeats Revere, 73-60, in season opener
The Chelsea High boys basketball team opened its season with a pulsating 73-60 triumph over arch-rival Revere Monday night before a large and raucous crowd at Revere’s Merullo Fieldhouse.
The host Patriots opened the Battle of Broadway by jumping out to an 18-12 first quarter lead behind sharp-shooting junior guards Marcus Brunson-Perez (24 points, five rebounds) and Scott Montefusco (eight points), who combined to drain five three-pointers in the opening eight minutes.
However, Chelsea came roaring back in the second quarter, led by the Red Devils’ shooting guard, Eli Ware (20 points), who sank four treys in the period to boost Chelsea into a 37-33 edge at the half.
Revere’s junior big man, Nicholas Ciciulla (eight points, five rebounds) gave the Patriots a lift off the bench, but Chelsea’s senior guard, Franklin Cruz (33 points), who was held to just nine points in the first half, thanks to some great defense by the Patriots, caught fire after the intermission
Chelsea carried a 53-45 lead into the final quarter, but a young Revere squad — which graduated most of its big guns from last year’s team that qualified for the state tourney for the first time since 2001 — continued to fight hard, staying within six points for much of the final frame.
However, Cruz proved too much to handle down the stretch, hitting for 15 points in the fourth period, to propel the Red Devils to the triumph.
Chelsea was scheduled to open its Commonwealth Athletic Conference play this past Tuesday evening at Essex Tech. The Red Devils have a busy week ahead, hosting Mystic Valley tomorrow (Friday at 5:30 p.m.), Shawsheen Tech Tuesday (7 p.m.), and Lynn Tech next Thursday (7 p.m.).